alcanforar

To treat or impregnate something with camphor — traditionally used to protect stored clothing and wool from moths (alcanforar la ropa de invierno) and, in older home remedies, as a topical treatment. A household-and-remedies word more than an everyday one.

• Mi abuela siempre alcanforaba la ropa de lana antes de guardarla. — My grandmother always camphorated the wool clothes before putting them away.
• Alcanforaron el armario para evitar la polilla. — They camphorated the closet to keep moths away.
• El ungüento alcanforado se usaba para aliviar el pecho congestionado. — The camphorated ointment was used to relieve a congested chest.

Assuming this is a common modern verb — cedar blocks and commercial mothballs have mostly replaced the practice it describes, so alcanforar now reads as slightly old-fashioned, more grandmother's-house than everyday.